The Collegian

Issue date: 10/21/05 Section: News

Media Credit: Zach Fuller Just some of the staff at Delta College.

"We're not just poo poo technicians," said Jesse Valdez.

You see them every day, sweeping floors, cleaning bathrooms, and taking out the trash, but do you really appreciate what they do? Some Delta College custodians wonder.

"We don't get credit as much as we should," said Valdez, Danner Hall custodian. "I consider myself more than a custodian. We assist the public in any way possible."

One thing that Delta's custodians do that extends beyond janitorial duties is assisting people who are lost, especially during events and in the beginning of the school year. Custodians also act to return lost items to students who have misplaced their belongings.

"Car keys, cell-phones, purses, jackets, we find all that stuff," said Valdez when asked if he ever finds anything unusual on the floor.

"Sometimes somebody will even forget a laptop. We turn it in to the lost and found. If that's closed we call the campus police and they'll pick it up."

Furthermore, Delta custodians act in a security capacity as well, intervening and calling campus police in cases of harassment or other disorderly conduct.

"We're semi-security too," said Valdez "We're like a second eye for the campus police."

Rosa Hernandez is a custodian for the first and second floor of the Locke Building.

"We clean up after you guys," she said.

Hernandez enjoys her job saying: "I like associating with the students." she also says that recognition for the importance of her duties is varied.

"Some students appreciate us and some don't, some give us a hard time. Others are very nice, it's a mixed crowd."

Mike Castro, who has been a custodian at Delta for 14 years, commented on the array of objects often left at the base of garbage cans by students who miss when tossing their trash: "If they were trying to get a job at the NBA, none of them would make it' they're all over the floor, and that trashcan is this big," he said, holding out his arms to demonstrate.

Although Delta's custodians may not always get recognition for the non-janitorial aspects of their jobs they take their cleaning responsibilities seriously and take pride in their work. "People say, 'Jesse does the bathrooms there, go over there,'" said Valdez, referring to the Danner Hall restrooms he cleans. "I look at it as my bathroom," he said.

"We work hard to keep the place clean," said Castro. "Sometimes it's an impossible job, but we keep trying."

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